Turn off “Enable location services” prompt

[rigilbert]

Every time I go to the Fitbit app on my iPhone, I get a prompt asking me to “Enable location services”. I’m quite capable of turning on location services for gps tracking of exercise when I wish to, thank you very much.

It only started happening with the most recent app update and I find this “pop-up” to be very annoying and intrusive. I most certainly don’t want to see it every flippin’ time I go to the app.

Is there a way to disable it?

[GraceGFitbit]

Hi @rigilbert, thanks for stopping by!

In order to further assist you, I've gone ahead and escalated your case to the team in charge. In the meantime you can try to logging out from the app, restart your phone and then log back in.

I hope that helps. Let me know how it goes! 

[rigilbert]

Thanks for the reply, Grace. I've followed your suggestion, but that hasn't worked. I'm still getting the prompt every time I open the app. 

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @rigilbert, I hope you're doing well, thanks for taking the time to reply. 

I appreciate you have come back and tried the troubleshooting steps provided by @GraceGFitbit. At this moment, I would like to ask you to go to your phone Settings > Fitbit and turn off "Bluetooth Sharing". Then, force-quit the Fitbit app and open it again. Let us know how it goes. 

Note that you will still be able to sync even if "Bluetooth Sharing" is disabled. 

Thanks for your patience and understanding, let us know in case you need anything else. 

[rigilbert]

Thanks for the assistance @MarcoGFitbit 

No success, I'm afraid. I did as you suggested a few times, and on the last try also shut down my iPhone and restarted it. However, on going back to the Fitbit app, even with bluetooth sharing still turned off, the "Enable location services" prompt still appears every time.

All other suggestions welcomed...

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @rigilbert, I hope you're doing well, thanks for coming back. 

I appreciate you have taken the time to reply and let us know you've tried the troubleshooting steps provided earlier. At this moment, I would like to ask you to go to your phone Settings > Fitbit again and tap on Location, then set it to "Always". After that, if you have the Fitbit app open, force-quit it and open it again and sync your Fitbit device, make sure the banner does not show this time, do not force-quit the app after that. 

Then, go back to Settings > Fitbit and tap on Location again and select "Never". Go back to the Fitbit app and sync your device again. 

I hope this can be helpful, give it a try and let us know the outcome! 

[rigilbert]

Thanks for the guidance, Marco. I've followed your instructions a couple of times, but I'm still getting a prompt - this time a different one. This new one states:

Location Access & Bluetooth Sharing

Set Allow Location Access to Always to track your exercise with GPS. Turn on Bluetooth Sharing to start a GPS exercise from your tracker.

However, having double-checked, I can confirm that Bluetooth Sharing with the Fitbit app is already turned on. Location Services is on (it's necessary to have Location Services turned on at this point in order to access "Location->Always/Never" settings).

If I turn Location Services off (with Share My Location for Fitbit set at "Never" & Bluetooth Sharing turned on), I get the previous "Enable Location Services" prompt.

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @rigilbert, I hope you're doing well, thanks for coming back and let us know you've tried the troubleshooting steps provided earlier. 

At this moment, I will forward the information you have provided to our team so they can take a better look at this situation. Once we have more to share about this issue, we'll make sure to post it here in the official Forums. 

Thanks for your patience and understanding, if there's anything else you might want to add, please feel free to reply. 

[rigilbert]

OK, Marco. Thanks - and I'll keep an eye out for a solution in due course.

UPDATE:

Oddly and unexpectedly the prompts suddenly stopped showing over the weekend. The app & iPhone settings are unchanged from how they were described in my earlier post, and without any further interference from me the prompts appear to have stopped of their own accord. 

I’m happy about that, of course, but the mystery remains as to why the prompts started showing in the first place - and why they’ve stopped. Still, happy days! 

[MarcoGFitbit]

Hello @rigilbert, I hope you're doing well, thanks for taking the time to reply and update us about this situation. 

First of all, I sincerely apologize for the delay in the response. I appreciate you have come back to us and let us know the prompts stopped showing up in your phone, I'm very glad. I'll make sure to forward this information as well. If anything changes in the future, please let us know. 

In case you have some spare time, I would like to invite you to visit our Discussions board where you will find great tips and encouragement from other members and if there's anything else I can do for you, please keep me posted!

[Savvy_Frog]

There is still a problem.  I deliberately have Location services set to “Never” and find the incessant prompts to turn on location services VERY annoying.  I do not want to turn on location services ever.  You need to honor the “Never” setting.  It is deliberate!

[Mitcjayn]

Hi Savvy_Frog, have you been able to resolve the issue? I just bought a new phone and now the same thing keeps happening to me. At first, I had the setting to use my location only when using the Fitbit app and now have changed it to “Never”. However, it still keeps prompting me to turn it on!!! It’s very annoying! 

[Savvy_Frog]

I think I resolved it.  Try this:

On your phone (mine is iPhone) Go to your privacy settings.

Then Location Settings

Find the Fitbit app and even if it is set to Never, turn it to something else or remove it.  Then set it back to Never.  Force your phone to reset all your privacy location settings.  That seemed to work.

[Petitedoglover]

 MAKERS OF FITBIT - Please turn off this message for Versa 2. It is a pain. Did what was said here in the forum and it works for a bit and then goes back to asking me to turn on location services. You need a third option on the choice page when the message appears - NEVER show this message again. We are capable of making the choice when we want. We do not need to be prompted every day every time we look at the app. 

[Ceerig]

I am having the same issue - it's incessant. Every time I start an exercise session, I get non-stop requests to turn on my location services. Terrible customer experience! Please let me know how to disable this.

[Petitedoglover]

I wish I knew... I have tried EVERY fix in this chain and none of them work for more than a week. I also find it draws down my phone battery which drives me crazy.

I have written directly to Fitbit and am waiting for a response.


Envoyé de mon iPad - Sent from my iPad

[Ceerig]

Thanks, yeah, me too! I'll stay tuned. Very annoying (among other aspects of a generally positive customer experience).

[Petitedoglover]

Basically Fitbit said I HAVE to turn on location services if I want to sync as it needs blue tooth to do that in the background. I said I just want to sync when I open the app so I do not need location services on.

Then they said enable services for ‘only when using the app’ and I explained that that does not solve the problem as then I get the message that my services are limited.

No solution as of yet.


Envoyé de mon iPad - Sent from my iPad

[Ceerig]

Same here: I do have it turned on to use while using the app, but that's not enough.

I suspect this is a known issue but it hasn't been prioritized to fix. Ugh!

Good luck - stay in touch!

[Petitedoglover]

So after a day of conversation, I was told that Location services needed to be turned on to enable notifications. And that they can’t or WON’T do anything about people receiving the message.

Envoyé de mon iPad - Sent from my iPad